📔 Weekly Journal: Software Giants Pivot to AI Agents
[6 min read] Your weekend guide to getting ahead on the digital frontier. Today, the usual market news & how big tech are integrating AI agents to enhance productivity and explore new pricing models.
Welcome to this week’s Weekly Journal 📔, your guide to the latest news & innovation in emerging technology, digital assets, and our exciting path to the Metaverse. This is week 94 of the 520 weeks of newsletters I have committed to, a decade of documenting our physical and digital lives converge.
New subscribers are encouraged to check out the history & purpose of this newsletter as well as the archive.
- Ryan
🌐 Digital Assets Market Update
To me, the Metaverse is the convergence of physical & virtual lives. As we work, play and socialise in virtual worlds, we need virtual currencies & assets. These have now reached mainstream finance as a defined asset class:
🔥🗺️ 7-day heatmap below, showing the current share of the market for the top cryptocurrencies, and their change in price over the last week. BTC relatively flat, while Eth is up.
🎭 Crypto Fear and Greed Index is based on volatility, social media sentiments, surveys, market momentum, and a few other bits and pieces.
🗞️ Interesting news from this week
Microsoft, Salesforce, and Workday are shifting their focus to AI agents, the next evolution of AI-powered assistants, aiming to integrate them into business processes. These AI agents are designed to take action on behalf of users, moving beyond simply providing information, as seen with Microsoft’s 'copilot'. Despite doubts over monetisation, software giants hope these agents will enhance productivity, handling tasks from expense reports to customer service. While adoption remains cautious due to AI's tendency to "hallucinate," the industry is exploring new pricing models, like usage-based fees, to capitalise on this technology shift, potentially reshaping software companies' revenue structures.
OpenAI is reportedly facing a $5 billion loss in 2024 but remains committed to scaling up, backed by Microsoft. Despite concerns over financial losses, the company is exploring a valid path to profitability, aiming to be a "generational company." OpenAI has 1 million corporate customers and 200 million weekly active ChatGPT users, doubling since last November. A new funding round, involving Apple and Nvidia, seeks $6.5 billion at a $150 billion valuation. OpenAI is also preparing to launch its "Strawberry" AI model, targeting enterprise solutions. As rival Anthropic finds success with its Claude Enterprise model, OpenAI's momentum continues.
Louisiana has joined the growing list of U.S. states accepting cryptocurrency payments for state services. Treasurer John Fleming announced that residents can now pay fines and fees using Bitcoin, the Bitcoin Lightning Network, and the stablecoin USDC. The state processed its first crypto payment through the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Other states, including Florida, Colorado, and Utah, have also taken steps to integrate crypto into government operations. While Ohio initially accepted Bitcoin for tax payments, it later shut down the programme. California is exploring blockchain technology, using it for secure record-keeping in the Department of Motor Vehicles.
👓 Read of the Week
“Working Paper: Runaway Citations and the Persistence of Bitcoin Misinformation V2.0” is the Digital Assets Research Institute's inaugural working paper that explores how flawed research can continue to shape discourse through persistent citations, even after being debunked. The paper focuses on Bitcoin, revealing how early studies—lacking reliable data—unfairly labelled it an environmental threat due to alleged high energy use, CO₂ emissions, and e-waste. Despite newer, rigorous research disproving these claims, the outdated narrative persists because the initial, heavily cited papers set a lasting perception. This study highlights the difficulty that superior, subsequent research faces in altering entrenched views and demonstrates how citation counts can perpetuate misinformation.
This figure below hit home for me:
🎥 Watch of the week
This panel discussion examines Apple's Vision Pro and its impact on spatial computing and immersive experiences within enterprise settings. Panellists discuss how Vision Pro differs from traditional VR/XR headsets, highlighting its applications in sectors such as training, manufacturing, real estate, and healthcare. They explore how the technology can improve business efficiency, citing examples like using digital twins for cabin crew training. The conversation also addresses the challenges of integrating this technology into organisations and how generative AI might support content creation. The discussion offers perspectives on Vision Pro's role in the evolving landscape of immersive technology.
AI 🎨🤖🎵✍🏼
In the Metaverse, AI will be critical for creating intelligent virtual environments and avatars that can understand and respond to users with human-like cognition and natural interactions:
ACC, New Zealand’s Accident Compensation Corporation, has successfully trialled Microsoft’s Copilot, a generative AI programme, becoming the first NZ government agency to do so. Internal reports revealed that four-fifths of 300 staff experienced improvements in work quality, speed, and benefits for individuals with dyslexia or poor hearing. The AI operates on a fixed dataset, minimising privacy risks, and doesn’t integrate with ACC's main client systems. The government’s chief digital officer approved the trial, and its findings are being shared across public agencies. ACC invested $70,000 in the trials but hasn't disclosed future licensing costs. Microsoft revenues reached $1.2 billion in 2023.
That’s all for the free version this week! If you have any organisations in mind that could benefit from learning about emerging technology, be sure to reach out. Educational workshops are one of many consulting services I offer.
DCA With Me 🤑
Dollar Cost Averaging is an investment strategy in which an investor regularly invests a fixed amount of money into a particular asset/asset class at regular intervals, regardless of its current market cycle. By doing so, the investor can reduce the impact of market volatility and potentially earn a better return over time. Motto = time IN the market beats trying to time the market
To experiment with this, I invest $50 NZD into a Digital Asset every week. Each week I will choose an asset that seems underpriced in the short term and has positive long-term potential. My timeframe is 3-5 years. I don’t give financial advice but if you want to follow along with me you can use my easycrypto.co.nz referral link to support this newsletter. Let’s dive into this week’s pick:
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